Birthday time for Google

And now a surprise post from the technology news desk.

The internet isn't very old, not even 20 years yet for the 'real' web.
In that time though there have been a number of phenomenon-menom..s; I'm not talking about chain emails promising money from Bill Gates, or Nigerian bank scams either. The real thing:

1. David 'Don't Hassel The Hoff' Hasselhoff
The original master of Knight Rider and Baywatch himself has since 'appeared' in many online satire, some of it his own. And yes, he does own rights to 'Don't Hassel The Hoff'. He's also the highest selling music artist in Germany...



2. Chuck Norris
Fact: Chuck Norris can divide by zero.
Fact: There are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, Chuck Norris lives in Oklahoma.
Fact: Chuck Norris knows the last digit of pi.
These 'fact's any many many more have sprung up all over the internet surrounding this mythic martial artist. But the question you have to ask is, if so many 'facts' exist where did they come from in the first place?
The answer is of course "a roundhouse kick to face".

3. Star Wars Kid
A tragic tale of embarrassment, turned into viewing for millions of people. Take one unfortunate adolescent doing lightsaber tricks and film him. Put it on the internet. Add visual fx. Put on internet again. Create an internet legend. Get sued. Terrible or funny? You decide.

4. Rickrolling
From Wikipedia:
Rickrolling is an Internet meme involving the music video for the 1987 Rick Astley song "Never Gonna Give You Up". The meme is a bait and switch: a person provides a Web link they claim is relevant to the topic at hand, but the link actually takes the user to the Astley video. The URL can be masked or obfuscated in some manner so that the user cannot determine the true source of the link without clicking (and thus satisfying their curiosity). When a person clicks on the link given and is led to the web page he/she is said to have been "Rickrolled"...

5. Ok Go "Here It Goes Again"
You might know it as 'the treadmill song'. A genius music video and a great song too.

6. Strongbad/Homestarrunner
Very clever and funny animations created from user submitted emails, to Strongbad. Made famous mostly by word-of-mouth, so much so that there is now a computer game (plus other merchandise).

The list goes on. It really does.

"So what?" you ask.
Because this leads me into another internet phenomenon - Google.

Google is celebrating it's tenth birthday at the moment (huzzah). Starting small with their search engine (strangely called 'Google') they have expanded beyond belief into nearly all aspects of web-life:

• The aforementioned search engine, so popular that the word 'Google' is now a verb and a noun. Where would we be without it?
  
• YouTube, bought by Google for the tidy sum of 1.6 billion US dollars; and one of the most popular sites on the net (and already used a bunch of times in this post)
• Google AdWords. Where Google gets it's income from. They appear on many many websites, but you might not have noticed
  
• Google Maps and Google Earth. The reason you can surf the web at work; because it's 'educational'. Also really brilliant for finding directions; like to this amazing place!
• Gmail and Blogger. Almost unlimited online email, and a blog site (which you are reading from)
  
• A recently released web browser 'Chrome', which had some trouble with the user licence but will probably take off (I still like Firefox though)
• A recently announced touch phone to rival Apple's Ipod

Why are Google so successful, and enjoying continued consumer fandom?

1. Everything is free! (well not the phone...probably)
2. They aren't Microsoft
3. They have a sense of humour
   

So with that in mind, join me in wishing Google a happy tenth birthday. Long may it continue.

I'll finish with a warning - I'm thinking of writing my next post(s) as a serious look at Christian religion and living. There may be a dramatic shift in tone. You have been warned.

The End of the World. But it got better.

Hi again,
I'm back with something conspiracy theorists are going to love. A public safety message.

In my last post , I said that although the newly developed CERN particle ring had started up, it hadn't caused the end of the world through a black-hole.

I was wrong.

You may not have realised, but linked* to this event was the following news article, Kiwi lollies lose their sparkle

Yes that's right, giant confectionary maker Cadbury-Pascall pulled the iconic New Zealand lollies** from shelves, meaning the sudden disappearance of Sparkles, Tangy Fruits and Snifters. Will Jaffas be the next casualty? who can tell.

And this occured at the same time the particle accelerator started up. Coincidence? I think not!***

Luckily for New Zealand and the rest of the world this phenomenon was short lived; as the accelerator in question developed a world-confectionary saving fault and was shut down.

Add some heated environmental protesting via consumer outrage, and it looks as though Cadbury may restore the missing lollies to shelves - the damage to the earth will be minimal.
But it was a close thing.

In case this should happen again, stock up on your favourite lollies now to be prepared.
There's no telling when such a disaster may occur again, and next time we may not be as lucky.


* May not be statistically valid
** Lolly; aka confectionary, candy, sweets
*** Ok yes, maybe coincidence

The end of the world? Or at least France

Day 1.
Today at CERN, the world's largest particle accelerator started up, Scientists start up particle-smasher

It didn't cause the end of the world (or if it did no-one noticed), and is instead trying to find the existence of new forms of matter; using the tried and try technique of smashing things together at high speeds.
Much like a demolition derby, but with smaller cars and a bigger arena.

In this article Kiwi with his finger on the Big Bang Button our famous Kiwi is quoted as saying,
"We have been shown to meet all safety standards. In terms of the black-hole scenario, LHC is safe."

The black-hole scenario?!

I don't know about you but that statement makes me more worried than some assumed apocalypse from an oversized science lab.

I mean, really what is the scenario for a black hole?

Scenario 8.1 Black-Holes
Description: [EVENT: APOCALYPSE] The event the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) causes the spontaneous creation of a black-hole, or holes. Shortly after (ie. immediately) the intensive gravitational field sucks all matter into said black-hole, causing the end of the world. And the solar system.
Risk: Low, but honestly we don't know since no-one has ever made a black hole before.
Person Responsible: John. Yeah, definitely John.
Mitigation: Unknown, but options may be -
i. Pray to God (possible conflict of interest)
ii. Stop, Drop and Roll
iii. Fire extinguisher
iv. Time Machine (to be designed)
v. Evacuate to Alpha Centarii (undergoing budgetary constraints)
vi. Chuck Norris
Note: At all times act positive for the media; and Chuck Norris.

Valuable scientific work, yes. Crazy? Also yes.
It leads me to the following statement:
Science is about hypotheses and testing. If you want absolutes, look elsewhere.

"Where were you when I created the earth?
Tell me, since you know so much!
Who decided on its size? Certainly you'll know that!
Who came up with the blueprints and measurements?
How was its foundation poured,
and who set the cornerstone,
While the morning stars sang in chorus
and all the angels shouted praise?"
Job 38:4-7

"And evening passed and morning came, marking the first day."
Genesis Ch1:4

Wondering out loud

And now from the political news desk, Me.
This may be a one-off post, as politics isn't usually something I dabble in; and I warn you there is controversy ahead (yes really) which is why it may be the first and last post. However now for the news...

Sarah Palin, the new deputy for John McCain is almost a Republican dream-boat:

• Miss congeniality at a beauty pageant
• Married to pro sports person
• One child in the army
• One child disabled
• Member of the NRA
• Anti-abortion
• Pro death penalty

If it wasn't for daughter Bristol things would be hunky-dory (this should test her anti-abortion stance at least). http://www.stuff.co.nz/4677901a12.html
(was that controversial?)

But it isn't abortion or lack thereof that I'm questioning, that issue is infinitely large and emotive and I'm not qualified to comment.
(safe here)

My question is purely based on logic (Vulcan's beware):
How can you support the death penalty, yet not support abortion?
(hey, that sounded controversial)

Abortion - noun - "any of various surgical methods for terminating a pregnancy."
Death penalty - noun - "a sentence of punishment by execution."

From the above definitions it could be implied that abortion attempts to improve the life of the mother by terminating a pregnancy; whereas the death penalty attempts to improve society by terminating an individual. Which may sound similar; but they aren't; or are they; no definitely aren't-are. Which one was correct again?
(argh controversy again)

I have another question:
What about grace* and mercy?
(and more controversy, end it now!)

Just throwing ideas out there.


* Grace is a Christian concept of favour and forgiveness for the undeserving. And you thought abortion was a tricky topic...

Holding on to the travel bug

So I have been back in New Zealand for a week, and my previous post was a 10 days ago (which is almost infinity in email-time). Trouble was I didn't know how to convert a travel blog into something sophisticated like discussing the thematic relationships of Wall-E.

So I haven't.*

When you come back from holiday it turns out there is one, and only one, question that people ask you - "What was your favourite place?"

This is a ridiculous question, as every day I saw something I hadn't seen before (or thousands of things I hadn't seen before) having to rate them on some sort of scale is impossible.
Three things define the experience:
1. What you see
2. What you do
3. Who you are with

If you don't believe me, try going to Disneyland by yourself, go to the Grand Canyon with a paper bag on your head, or eat a romantic dinner for one.

For anything to be enjoyable (and this isn't just for travel) you will be able to have fun with one of the above; can go a long long way with two; and if you get all three then it's probably one of the best days of your life.

So I invite you to take today and use it to appreciate something new, and share it with someone special.

(The Grand Canyon is pretty amazing too)

* The next post I promise.

I went to America and all I got was this stupid blog

As I prepare to leave London for New Zealand, I thought I'd give five quick highlights from USA.

1. Alcatraz (San Francisco)
Touring around The Rock is quite an experience, especially finding out the flaws in the movie 'The Rock'.

2. Yosemite National Park
Having been to Yosemite twice now (winter and summer) I can say it is a beautiful place in either season. Go in summer to enjoy some excellent views and challenging walks

3. Grand Canyon
One of the national wonders of the world and once you arrive it is easy to see why. A simply breathtaking place.

4. Niagara Falls
Another natural wonder, and where the Grand Canyon stuns the eyes with epic scale, the Falls also include the senses of touch and hearing, as the huge flow of water thunders over the cliffs.

5. Lincoln Memorial (Washington DC)
Immortalised in a number of movies, including Forrest Gump; this memorial to President Lincoln is sobering and classic. Turn around for a excellent view up the mall to the Capitol.

PS: Remember that in America the most useful currency is:
One dollar bill - Used in tipping, which means all the time; don't substitute for the one dollar coin.
Quarter dollar - Used in every coin operated machine everywhere

Eye on London

Being back in London again, some things stand out as unusual:

1. Summer
Everything you hear about an English summer is true. Expect to be rained on, blown away, or electrocuted in a thunder storm. You wonder why sun screen is even sold here.

2. Left and Right
English drive on the left (the correct side) and hence overtake on the right, but on the underground you stand on the right and overtake on the left. Nonsensical.

3. Weights and Measures
The English have a 'relaxed' attitude to metric measure. Expect to see litres used on liquid volume; but miles used in distance - unless they use kilometres.
As Daniel also mentioned, a sign saying 5m could mean 5 miles or 5 minutes.

4. Princess Diana Memorial Fountain
With all respect to the late princess, calling her memorial a 'fountain' is a stretch of the definition at the best of times. More apt would be 'aqueduct', 'drain', or more poetically a 'cascade'.

5. Madame Tussards
Everyone knows Madame Tussards, the famous celebrity wax museum (and worth the price of entry). However it isn't quite that easy.
a. The models are made of fibreglass, not wax. Only the original scuplt is wax, and then moulded with fibreglass to make it last longer.
b. Part of the tour includes a dungeon (what's with the British and their dungeons) where live actors frighten the audience. Surely this is a blasphemy for a wax museum.

Tomorrow I leave for New Zealand and back to whatever you call a normal life. Time to sort out my photos